Yozora no Mukou
by Bearit
Summary: A sequel for Lion Heart: With Hikaru living married with Lantis in Cephiro, her brothers resume everyday life as best as they possibly can. Masaru is the only successful one. Discontinued.
1. Ever Since Then

_**Yozora no Mukou: Chapter One: Ever Since Then**_

**Bearit's Notes**: Hiya everyone! I've finally decided that I will write a sequel for "Lion Heart", and here it is, "Yozora no Mukou", which translates to "Beyond the Night Sky". Yes, it's named after yet another SMAP song of the same name. I hope you enjoy! (Normal warnings apply)

* * *

It had been a year since the weddings. Hikaru and Fuu were permanently living in Cephiro with their husbands, though Umi still had yet to have even a boyfriend, so she traveled frequently between both lands. Hikaru made it easier for her brothers and Umi to do so by their own freewill, though by Satoru's advice, Kakeru limited his visits to once a month. Masaru kept his control easily; he had married Katsumi and they had a son named Shingo. Plus, he held an important role in a new anime; he couldn't just take a week's worth of vacation lest he delayed the release of a few episodes.

Kakeru admitted that life was now dull for him. He still kept his distance from his father, but now he lived in an apartment in downtown Tokyo. It was easier access to Tokyo Tower, and therefore easier access to Cephiro, but he had a promise to keep to Satoru.

His friend Hidehiro had married Hikaru's friend Rei, and Yuujirou was busy in Hokkaido with family affairs of some sort. Kakeru never asked, so Yuujirou never told. Sera was busy in America working on some space station project, and Fumiko...

Now that Kakeru thought about it, he didn't know where Fumiko was, much less what she was up to. In fact, he last saw her at Hikaru's wedding, which was a good seven months ago. Perhaps she had decided to stay in Cephiro?

_Nah_, Kakeru thought. _Considering how frequently Umi goes there, I would have heard even in Tokyo some of the arguments. It's either that, or Umi killed Fumiko_.

Kakeru considered that for a while. Considering how explosive Fumiko and Umi became during their arguments and with Geo's and Zazu's failed attempts to get the girls to simmer down...

_I wouldn't be surprised if she did. Or vice versa: maybe Fumiko killed Umi._

Satoru taught at the Shidou Kendo School with their father now, and Kyousuke assisted. It was actually no different than before; the only real change was that the founder of the Shidou style was once again the headmaster of the school rather than his son. The dojo was gaining more and more popularity, and there was no day when Kakeru wandered the streets of Tokyo he never heard someone--any random person--talking about it.

Now that Kakeru thought about it, it was very ironic. It was almost if all four Shidou siblings were destined to be popular in some way. Satoru was a teacher of a popular kendo school and was the crush target of more than half of the female students (and most of those students only joined because of Satoru--never mind that he was more than twice the age of many of those girls), Masaru was a famous actor, and Hikaru was the would-be Pillar of Cephiro.

Kakeru was a star baseball player. He would have been a soccer player if baseball didn't pay him a whole lot more, but that was okay; the manager of the Lions, the team he played for, told him that the American Major Leagues were interested in recruiting him. Kakeru was going to refuse, of course. He liked it in Japan just fine.

The real beauty of living in a huge metropolis was that he would look familiar to a lot of his fans, but out of respect and fear that he may not be the real Kakeru Shidou, nobody ever approached him. It was a really happy life.

Happy, but utterly dull.

Kakeru slumped onto the pastel couch in his apartment and grabbed the remote control, turning the television on. It was morning; he might as well watch some of the news. In the end, it wasn't anything he was particularly interested in; the Americans were still in the Middle East as soldiers and diplomats against terrorism, a drought was conquering the western coast of Japan, and in sports was the same old, same old. Just when he was about to change the channel, a loud knock sounded on the door.

He stood from the couch and trudged to the front door.

"Coming," he called absent-mindedly. The pounding grew louder. "I said 'coming', damn it--"

Kakeru opened the door, and lo and behold, Fumiko Tachiiri stood there with a bright smile on her face.

"Good morning, Kakeru!" Fumiko chirped.

Kakeru blinked. He thought he would never use the word 'chirped' in conjunction with Hikaru's best friend, the almost exact replica of Umi Ryuuzaki. He narrowed his eyes.

"What the hell?" he asked.

"Can I come in?"

"No."

"Oh, come _on_," Fumiko pleaded. Another word Kakeru thought he would never use in conjunction with Hikaru's best friend. He blinked again.

"No."

"Kakeru..." Her voice held a warning tone, and Kakeru sighed softly in relief. There was the Fumiko he was used to.

"All right, all right," he muttered, stepping aside.

She bounced--yet another word that never fit her--inside, and Kakeru shut the door. Fumiko sat on the ground and pulled off her shoes, humming a happy tune. Something was going on, and Kakeru was pretty sure that he didn't like it.

"Fumiko..."

"Yes?" she chirped again.

Kakeru's eyebrow twitched. "What the hell are you doing here?"

When both of her shoes were off, Fumiko hopped to her feet.

"What?" she asked, beaming a ray of sunlight. As if the weather wasn't already bright enough, Kakeru thought bitterly. "Am I not allowed to visit my best friend's older brother?"

"This isn't just a visit," Kakeru growled. "You're here for a reason... tell me what it is, damn it!"

Fumiko looked comically at him as if she were giving the matter a serious thought. After about five seconds, she shook her head.

"Nope."

"FUMIKO!"

She giggled. "Get me something to drink first... and get yourself some water. And then sit down. And then I'll tell you."

"Evil bitch," Kakeru muttered as he stomped into the kitchen.

"I know I am," Fumiko said as she entered the living room.

Under his breath, Kakeru murmured obscenities that he would never say to Fumiko's face even in her good mood... or the mood she was in now, whatever _that_ was. He pulled out two glasses from the cabinet--it was a good thing that he had done the dishes the other day--and poured faucet water into one of them. He poured green tea into the other, and he walked into the living room, where Fumiko had already settled herself on the couch.

He sighed and handed her the green tea.

"Here."

"Thank you!" Fumiko chirped. Again.

Kakeru was seriously getting freaked out.

"Fumiko, if you don't tell me what the hell is going on..."

"Sit," she commanded. "And then I'll tell you."

Kakeru scowled but did what he was told as he grabbed a seat next to her. "Now," he said. "You tell me. Why are you so... perky?"

_Fumiko... perky... that does _not_ mix at all_, he thought.

"Well..." Fumiko began. She hesitated with a mischievous expression on her face. "I just got back from Cephiro, you see."

"So you WERE there the entire time?" Kakeru asked with an eyebrow raised. "Is Umi dead or something?"

"No. She's quite alive, but she's in England right now," Fumiko said as-a-matter-of-factly. "Now, do you want to know, or what?"

Kakeru sighed. "I want to know. Now tell me."

"With that attitude I'm not telling you anything."

"FUMIKO!"

She laughed. "Let's see... when was the last time you were in Cephiro?"

"About two weeks ago, why?"

"That means you can't go back for another... what? Two more weeks?"

Kakeru slapped his forehead. "I'm going back in three weeks for Hikaru-chan's birthday."

"Hmmmm," Fumiko mused. "She may be upset with me if I told you since she wants to tell you herself, but she still has Satoru-san and Masaru-san to give this information to."

Kakeru glowered. "Is there something wrong with my sister?"

Fumiko burst into a guffaw again. "Oh, there's nothing wrong with her, but there is something definitely, ah, different about her, that's for sure!"

"What?"

Fumiko grinned. "Okay, I'll tell you, but you _can't_ tell your brothers. Let Hikaru tell them herself since I'm stealing this joy from her. Besides, telling you will be more fun for me than it will be for her."

"Fumiko..." Kakeru growled.

"Hikaru. Is. Pregnant!" Fumiko chirped. Again. But this time, Kakeru gaped for a completely different reason.

"Wh-wha-wha-"

Apparently, the look on Kakeru's face was so amusing that Fumiko laughed even harder than she had the previous times. She doubled over and had to set her cup of tea on the table to keep it from spilling on the carpet. Kakeru continued to stare forward, absolutely stunned. He found that he couldn't get a coherent thought in his head.

"Hikaru... what... Hikaru-chan is... WHAT?!"

Fumiko's outbursts grew louder.

"Oh... my... God..." Kakeru murmured.

Fumiko finally sat back up, but her guffaw would still not disperse. "Kakeru," she choked. "Water."

"Er... right..."

He slowly brought the cup to his mouth and sipped the liquid, but it helped none. Fumiko must have noticed, for she simmered down and said as quietly as she could possibly muster, "I should have told you to get ice cold water, shouldn't I?"

"Er..."

Fumiko heaved a great sigh, her laughter finally disappearing. "Let me see that," she said as she grabbed the cup from Kakeru's hand. The next thing he knew, a splash exploded on his face, and his head was soaked with water.

Kakeru narrowed his eyes. "Fumiko..." he growled.

"There!" she said proudly. "It was fun while it lasted, but I need you back to normal now. I have to leave for work in a couple of minutes, and it would be just cruel if I left you as a sputtering idiot."

"Right. Work?"

"I have an office job in Sunshine 60."

"Oh. But Hikaru-chan? What? She's... what? WHAT?!"

Fumiko smiled. "Yes, she is. We just found out last week. Who would have ever thought that she would the first one of us to have a kid? Last I heard, Rei and Hidehiro were going to wait for a couple of years before they were going to even try, and Yuujirou and Sera? Well..."

"But Masaru..."

"He doesn't count. He's not part of the gang."

"Oh."

"But then, of course, I didn't expect for her to be the first one of us married," she said. Her grin had softened, and now that Kakeru inspected her further, she seemed rather... mournful? "And yet, somehow, I was never surprised."

Kakeru smiled. "Who _can't_ love Hikaru-chan?"

"You have a point. Well, I have to go," she said as she stood up. "Work and everything. Oh, and I did come by for another reason. Geo and Tatra finally got over themselves. They're getting married around Cephiro's springtime. Our wintertime. December. As Hikaru's older brother, you're invited, and Tarta is looking forward to it."

"Oh," Kakeru said as he accompanied Fumiko to the door, "okay. I'm coming, then, I guess. Wow. Geo and Tatra are finally... I guess it's about time. I take it Eagle still hasn't woken up yet?"

Fumiko shook her head. "Nope. He keeps telling everybody that he's getting closer... he and Hikaru... but since Lantis isn't saying anything I know they're lying." She pulled on her shoes and opened the door. "Well, I guess I'll see you around, okay?"

"O-okay," Kakeru said. "Oh, but hey, I still need to catch up on how everybody is doing in Cephiro. Want to go out for dinner sometime?"

"You were only there two weeks ago," Fumiko said. "There's not much I can tell you. But _I_ need to catch up on how your brothers and my friends and your friends and you are doing. So, yeah, let's call it a date!"

Kakeru blinked. "A date? Whoa, wait a second--"

Fumiko sighed. "Not in the boyfriend girlfriend sense, you idiot."

"Oh," Kakeru said, half laughing, "all right. Is Saturday good? I don't have a game or anything. It has to be in the afternoon, though; my manager is a stickler on me being at batting practice early on Sundays."

"You have a game Monday, don't you?" Kakeru nodded. "Well, Saturday, three o'clock, at my work? Say, I have your phone number, so I'll call you for more specific instructions. If I don't leave now, I'm going to be late."

"All right, all right," Kakeru said as Fumiko stepped out of the apartment. "I'll see you see then!"

Fumiko nodded and walked down the hall. Kakeru closed the door and slumped his back against it and exhaled a great surplus of air.

He just couldn't believe it. Even with the other news Fumiko brought him, the fact that his little sister was pregnant astounded him and infested his entire mind. He knew that she was no longer a child and that she could take care of herself even better than he could, but it was mind boggling. To him, Hikaru would always remain a young, innocent girl that he must protect from emotional harm.

But still...

"Hikaru-chan... my little sister... pregnant?" he murmured. He fell to his knees. "... I hope I'm there when Hikaru-chan tells Satoru and Masaru..."

* * *

Elsewhere, in one of the suburbs of Tokyo, Masaru woke to a household of men. Katsumi was in Kyushu to act in a movie, so it was only him, his son Shingo, and his uncle Tadasu. He rolled over on the futon and stole a glance at the clock. Eight thirty. He didn't have to leave for the television station for another hour and a half. Just when he was about to sleep in, his uncle burst into the room.

"Masaru-kun, rise and shine!"

Masaru groaned. "Go 'way, Uncle."

"You're nearly thirty and you're complaining about getting up like a teenager!" Tadasu scoffed. "Come on, up! Shingo-kun needs a diaper change."

"You can't do it?"

"I'm making breakfast," replied Tadasu. "I can't get my hands dirty, unless you want baby wastes all over your food."

"They have sinks and soap for a reason, Uncle!"

"Or maybe you prefer your food burnt?"

"Fine," Masaru grumbled as he sat up and rubbed his eyes. Tadasu walked out of the room but left the rice paper door open. Masaru scowled and stood, stretching his arms high above his head. "Just another day of voicing an episode, that's all."

He walked to the dresser and pulled a drawer open. He grabbed a few pieces of clothing and threw them on, and only three minutes later did he walk into the living room and realize that Shingo really did need a diaper change.

"Ack!" Masaru threw a hand over his nose.

"See what I mean?" Tadasu called. "You better change it now."

"Okay, okay! I'm on it!" Masaru said as he picked his son up from the floor. He smiled at him innocently as if nothing was wrong, but Masaru glared at him. "You know, if your mother was here, I wouldn't have to do this sort of thing..."

He carried Shingo to the bathroom and laid him on the counter of the sink, muttering and grumbling about how much he hated changing diapers. He really felt empathy for his parents now, to have to go through this for four different kids. No wonder his uncle Tadasu stayed single.

_Smart man_, Masaru commended. He wrinkled his nose as he pulled the diaper off.

"Gah..."

_I wish Katsumi was here. Damn her for being such a beautiful and great actress! Leaving me with the dirty work! No, wait, damn Uncle for making breakfast!_

"This is a housewife's job," he muttered.

Apparently, he had said it loud enough for his uncle to here.

"Well, unfortunately, Katsumi-san isn't a housewife, and don't go making me out to be a house-uncle, you hear me?" Tadasu called.

"All right!"

Most of the time, Masaru got along with his uncle, which was why he called for him to be Shingo's guardian if anything were to happen to both himself and Katsumi. In fact, since Masaru and Katsumi were always so busy with their jobs, Tadasu was there to baby-sit Shingo for most of the day. Luckily, Katsumi was going to quit being an actress for a few years after the release of the movie she was currently working on, and Masaru's job as a voice actor kept him in Tokyo. Shingo would not grow up believing that his family was dysfunctional.

But despite Tadasu's protests and Masaru's reassurances, Masaru had to admit that his uncle really was the replacement for the lack of a housewife. He cooked, he cleaned, he did the laundry, and he took care of the kid. The only thing missing was an apron.

Not that Masaru was complaining of course.

He pulled on Shingo's shirt and tossed the dirty diaper into the trash. All done. Even taking care of Hikari wasn't as harsh as this.

Masaru picked his son up and grinned. "All right, Shingo-kun, let's get something to eat, all right?"

Shingo, of course, didn't understand a word his father said, but he didn't care all the same. A cheerful tone and a smile--and a clean diaper--was all he needed to be happy, so he giggled in joy.

"That-a-boy," Masaru said.

He walked back into the living room and let Shingo go back to watching the famed cartoon _Anpanman_, a show Masaru and his brothers and sister had grown up watching. He chuckled.

"Almost nostalgic," he muttered.

"Did you wash your hands, Masaru-kun?"

"Erk." Masaru gulped. "Yeah. Getting to it now, in fact..."

"Yeah, sure."

Masaru entered the bathroom again and turned the sink on, but he still decided to dwell into his memories. His brothers, sister, and himself had gone through so much in eighteen years, and he couldn't believe that nearly two decades had passed since his father had left the Shidou household. Everyone always knew that he left to get stronger, but they always thought physically; they never thought mentally. Kakeru still refused to listen to his father's reasons; he continued to deem them "pathetic excuses". And yet, if Kakeru was able to forgive Hidehiro and even become one of his best friends, then why was it taking him a longer time to do so with his own father?

Masaru knew the answer to that question. It's because Mitsuru Shidou was his father that Kakeru couldn't forgive him. When he was seven, he depended so heavily on him that when he broke a simple promise, Kakeru's world was crushed. Kakeru never had an opinion on Hidehiro Akugenta, and there was only a few months passing in between the misdeed and the regret as opposed to twelve years.

Even Tadasu, who wasn't even blood-related to Mitsuru but rather the younger brother of Kinoko, understood and forgave him. Everybody had except for Kakeru.

Someday, Masaru swore, he was going to have to knock some sense into his little brother. This obsession was getting him nowhere.

Masaru turned off the faucet and returned to the living room. "Is breakfast ready yet?"

"It will be soon," Tadasu answered. "Say, when was the last time you visited your family?"

"Where? Back at the school or in Cephiro?"

"At the school, but I guess you could bring Cephiro into account as well."

Masaru sighed. "Well, actually, I was in Cephiro about three months ago. I wonder how Hikaru-chan is doing. At the school, well, I haven't been there... well, for even longer than I haven't been in Cephiro. And don't even ask me about Kakeru. I know he lives in an apartment somewhere downtown but I don't know where exactly."

"Well, I was just thinking," said Tadasu, "since Katsumi is coming back in about a month since the filming will be finished by then, we should go visit them."

"Them? At the school or--"

"Both places."

"Ah."

"Besides, Hikaru-chan's birthday is in August, we might as go then. If I know Kakeru-kun, then he's probably planning to do the same thing. Let's get Satoru-kun and maybe even Kyousuke-san to come along, and maybe your parents too," Tadasu suggested.

"If that's the case," Masaru said, chuckling, "we might as well throw her a birthday party. After all, she's turning twenty-four, isn't she? Twenty-four is a very important age."

"Kakeru-kun is turning twenty-six in a couple of weeks."

"Yeah, but twenty-six isn't as an important age as twenty-four," Masaru said.

"Watch you change your mind in two years."

"Hey..."

"So, what do you say? Shall we go throw Hikaru-chan a birthday party?" Tadasu asked, popping his head out of the kitchen expectedly for an answer.

Masaru blinked, and then grinned, and then nodded. "Sure, why not?"

* * *

It didn't matter where in Japan or what the day of the week was, lunchtime at McDonald's was always crowded. And since it was July, everyone from junior high school students to entire families stood in the worthlessly air conditioned building waiting by the steaming counters for their lunch.

Kyousuke, being the keen man in circumstances such as this, dragged Satoru to the restaurant at eleven o'clock, barely beating the masses. Twenty minutes later, they were finished eating, but for the sake of having more privacy while they talked, they stuck around for a while longer. After all, why would a single person decide to eavesdrop on their conversation when there were dozens of others he could choose to listen to? And with the bustling discussions all around, it would be impossible for others to directly hear them, anyway.

"Now, what do you want to do after this?" Kyousuke asked. "There's a karaoke box just across the street, but we could always hitch a ride on the monorail and go down to Tachikawa... but then, we're a bit old to be shopping down there..."

"Why should that stop us?" Satoru asked. "We both look like we're still in our mid-twenties. I'm sure it will be fine."

"So, Tachikawa, is it? You're too modest for karaoke, anyway."

Satoru frowned. How could he say such a thing when Kyousuke only took him there once? "What do you mean?"

"Well, last time we went, back in high school, you sang no songs and me and the other guys ended up making fools out of ourselves," Kyousuke said. He sighed "You really don't know how to have fun, do you?"

"Yes, I do, I just don't dwell on it as much as you do."

"Which is why we're going to get back your childhood today," said Kyousuke. "I mean, really, you should have never let me stay in Eagle's room by myself if you didn't want something like this to happen."

"That's why your chances are very slim."

"Chances?"

"Going back to Cephiro."

Kyousuke stared at Satoru long and hard, and Satoru kept his solemn gaze. After half a minute, Kyousuke groaned, "Satoru, I don't know whether you're joking or being serious. Damn you. Just... damn you!"

Satoru chuckled to indicate to Kyousuke that he was just kidding around. It was also to prove a point; Satoru _did_ know how to have fun and hated when Kyousuke tried to tell him otherwise.

But Kyousuke's goal on taking Satoru out of the house for the day was not going to waste. Even Satoru's father agreed; it was about time that Satoru experienced life as a teenager, since while he was growing up, he had to live life like a full-grown man. It was a task that Satoru was prepared for, but prepared for and accomplished all too early. From Eagle, Kyousuke's suspicions had been confirmed, and he also took Eagle's advice to give Satoru that adolescent age back. Never mind that he was thirty-two years old; Satoru more than deserved to enjoy the life of the carefree.

Satoru knew why his father agreed to let him take a day off. He felt guilty for stealing those years from Satoru, and this was the best he could do give it back to him. Satoru knew that he was going to get more and more days like this. It was absolutely certain.

Kyousuke's never-ending mission in life, however, was also taking place on this day; though, as Satoru was about to find out, he actually seemed serious about it.

Yes, the never-ending proclamation that Satoru should get a girlfriend. He only wished that Kyousuke would one day see that Satoru just wasn't interested; not everybody had to settle down with a "one true love." Besides, in order to continue to be a devoted son and brother to his family, he would be best if he never married.

"So, Satoru," Kyousuke began again, shaking off the verbal prank Satoru pulled on him, "Fuu's sister is about our age, isn't she?"

"Younger. She's younger than Masaru," Satoru said. "Why?"

"Well, she acts just as old as us, though that's going to change soon," said Kyousuke with a small smirk. Satoru shook his head, but Kyousuke continued, "And she _looks_ just as old as us... what do you think about her?"

"What?"

Kyousuke cringed and stared out the window. "Well... you know... there's a perfect match for everybody. I hate to force you into a relationship and everything, and I'm not going to. Trust me. But... well... you do know where I'm getting with this, right?"

Satoru sighed. "I'm sure Kuu-san has other interests."

"Like who? Geo?"

"No," Satoru said, shaking his head. "Somebody from her work, or maybe even someone else in Cephiro. Or maybe someone we can't even consider. We haven't seen her in a long time, and we don't know too much about her."

"But if you knew that she wasn't interested in anybody else, would you give her a chance?"

"Most likely not. I'm not interested."

Kyousuke gaped. "'Not interested'? What's there to not be interested about? She's smart, sweet, beautiful--"

"If that's the case, why don't you try to go after her?" Satoru asked with a soft smile. "After all, you never had a girlfriend either. And don't go pulling that 'I'm different' excuse. We're the same, Kyousuke-san."

Kyousuke's face tinted red. "You won't believe how wrong you're on that," he muttered. "I'm sorry for being hypocritical, but I'm not... _that_ interested in her, either. I think you deserve her far more. There's nobody for me, and if there was, she's probably in New York or something like that. Someplace I'll never go."

"Hypocritical is right... it's either that, or you're not telling me something," said Satoru sternly. "Is there someone _else_ you're pining after although she is with another man? Or something along those lines, at least?"

Kyousuke sighed. "You're half right. I am pining after somebody, but I'm not going to tell you who. Come on. We're finished eating, and he might as well let someone else have these seats. It's getting too crowded."

Kyousuke stood up, leaving Satoru with a thought in his head.

_Somebody else? I wonder who. I wonder who he could possibly be in love with who is making him this miserable._

"Coming, Satoru?" Kyousuke asked. Satoru nodded and followed him out the door. "So, Tachikawa, is it?"

In an instant, Kyousuke's depression seemed to have disappeared, but Satoru knew better than to bombard him with questions about it. After all, if Kyousuke didn't wish to tell Satoru, then what right did he have to ask?

Besides, it was supposed to be a happy day, and Satoru had no particular interest in ruining that.

* * *

To Be Continued


	2. Believing in Something

_**Yozora no Mukou: Chapter Two: Believing in Something**_

**Bearit's Author Notes**: I bumped up the rating of this fic and "Lion Heart" to PG13--for more reasons than one. First and foremost, if I'm dealing with adults, I want freedom with what they say and how they act; meaning, if I'm stuck with the PG rating, I can't do that. Second of all, I think the language in "Lion Heart" was a bit much, especially in the third chapter, and too excessive to keep the rating at PG, so PG13 it went; the language and discussion in _this_ chapter was more than enough to merit the PG13 rating; you'll see why. And thirdly, I want "Yozora no Mukou" and "Lion Heart" to have the same rating. So, that's my reasoning behind the rating change. I apologize for _any_ inconvenience this may have caused you. Anyhow... I hope you enjoy!

* * *

_Procrastination is _over_!_ Masaru thought as he hurried from the bus stop to his house. _I will call Satoru-niisan and Kakeru _tonight_!_

The end of the week finally had come, and since Masaru, along with his fellow coworkers, had worked so hard the past four days, the director let the men out early to fully enjoy their weekend. After lunch with said coworkers, Masaru picked up the recent issue of _Jump Weekly_ to catch up on the latest story with the current anime he was working on.

Sadly, Masaru knew nothing about tennis until he caught his role in "_Tennis no Oujisama_." Now that he actually knew what the sport was about and _liked_ it, he found himself quite addicted to the series.

Every fan's dream: land some sort of role -- any kind of role -- that somehow involves a show they love.

That was everything about Masaru's career; needless to say, he had no objections to it.

In any case, he had to get home and finally call up his brothers about his and Tadasu's plan to throw Hikaru a birthday party. He had already talked to Katsumi, who was weary about it because she refused to be there if the rest of the in-laws were not going to be there. She was rather shy around the people from the other world although she had warmed up to Lantis immediately, but that was only because of the never-ending and never-dying resemblance to Satoru. It was really coming to the point that Masaru was growing sick of it, but everybody else was responding to it similarly when he or she first meets Satoru and Lantis for the first time.

It still didn't change the fact that Katsumi would only go if she could have some reassurance that more people from Earth would be there than just Hikaru, Umi, and Fuu, and Masaru, Tadasu, and Shingo. And, besides, if Masaru was going to ever approach the people of Cephiro about the plans, he figured it would be best if he talked to Satoru and Kakeru first.

Or, rather, Tadasu suggested with_ great emphasis_ that Masaru ought to ask if his brothers were going to go before talking to the people of Cephiro about the party. He also pointed out that he ought to get on it as soon as possible if it was going to be any sort of success.

Masaru scowled as he walked through the front gates. _Damn maternal types_.

"I'm home!" he called as soon as he opened the door.

After throwing his shoes off and dropping his bags, he realized exactly _what_ he was about to call his brothers up about and rushed to the telephone, completely ignoring his uncle's reply of, "Welcome back! You're rather early."

The first numbed he dialed up was the heart of the Shidou family: the dojo. He would be killing, well, more than one bird with one stone with this. Not only would he get his answer from Satoru, but he would also manage to snag some sort of reply from his parents.

Hey, even if Kyousuke was available, that would be awesome. Masaru idly wondered if Kyousuke was taking up residency in the dojo, and then told himself that he might as well; he spent so much time with Satoru, anyway, when the ringing stopped and a man's voice said:

"Hello?"

"Satoru-niisan?" Masaru asked ecstatically, immediately recognizing the voice. "Long time, no talk! How have you been? Doing good? Been busy? Are you busy now? Well, I guess it won't matter too much anyway--"

Satoru's suspicious voice answered, "Masaru, why are you calling?"

Masaru ended his mindless babble right then and there. _Damn older brother types who can read the minds of their younger siblings with ease. Damn them._

He sighed, but still kept up his cheerful tone. "I just thought I'd ask a question about your next trip to Cephiro. When is that going to be?"

"Probably not for a while. I think Kyousuke-san is spending too much time with Eagle-san, and I'm the victim of the results."

That answer was the last thing Masaru expected. "Oh."

"Why?"

"Well," the middle brother picked up his tone again, "I was just wondering... how would you like to throw Hikaru-chan a birthday party?"

Silence came from the other end, and Masaru thought that he either didn't use the right words, or that Satoru thought that he was nuts.

From Satoru's reply, it sounded like the latter.

"Didn't she just have some sort of party a year ago? You know, her _wedding_."

Sarcasm was not one of Satoru's traits.

"It was a year and a _half_," Masaru pointed out with a pout. "Cephiro's summer is our spring, isn't it? It's autumn over there right now, _isn't it_?"

"When was the last time you were in Cephiro?"

"When was the last time _you_ were there? Hikaru-chan's wedding?"

"Fuu-san was married after Hikaru was. Last time I was in Cephiro was nearly ten months ago for _her_ wedding. How about you?"

Masaru blinked. "Nearly ten months? Sheesh, I made sure to visit Hikaru-chan at least every once in a while! Well, whenever my character didn't have an episode to star in so I had that sort of time to. Last time I was there was, I think, maybe, three months ago. I don't know. Do you know anything about Kakeru?"

Satoru sighed. "I haven't talked to Kakeru since the start of this year's baseball season. If I know him at all, he was probably _just_ there. You haven't talked to Kakeru yet?"

"Well, no. This was kind of purely my idea, though I'm sure Kakeru won't have any objections to going."

"'Kind of purely?'"

"Uncle actually thought of going to Cephiro for Hikaru-chan's birthday-- I came up with the rest."

Satoru sighed as if he had expected that. He probably did, if the two older Shidou siblings knew each other at all. Masaru knew that Satoru expected the obvious, and Satoru knew that only Masaru would think up of such a thing.

"And Katsumi-san?" asked Satoru.

"She says that she's only coming if the rest of the family is. Meaning, you, me, Kakeru, Mother, Father, Uncle... so, what do you say?"

"I'll have to talk to Father and Mother first."

"Just _ask_ them. It won't take so long."

"Yelling in this house is not appropriate. How many times have Mother and I drilled that into your and Kakeru's heads?"

"Well, then, just put the phone down and go ask them!"

Masaru could almost hear Satoru's eyes narrowing, but when he heard a light tap on the other end, he knew that Satoru had given in and was actually doing what his younger brother had asked of him. It was... untraditional, therefore, un-Shidou-like. The younger brother was not supposed to boss the older brother around. The older brother wasn't supposed to do what the younger brother told him to do. Satoru was supposed to have given Masaru some sort of lecture about, well, something, to get himself out of doing the deed, and he didn't. It made Masaru feel good.

"Kyousuke-san," he faintly heard Satoru's voice on the other end, "could you do me a favor real quick?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Could you ask my parents whether or not they want to..." Satoru hesitated. With a great sigh, he continued, "Could you ask them if they would be willing to go to Cephiro for Hikaru's birthday and maybe even take part in a party?"

There was a pause. "What?" asked Kyousuke. "Since when did you--"

"It wasn't me. It was my brother."

"Masaru?"

"Yeah. Him."

"He's... still on the phone?"

"Yes."

"Oh, I see. Impatient much, is he?"

Masaru twitched. He knew Kyousuke meant to say that loud enough to irritate Masaru. He knew he could hear him. Kyousuke was not quite _that_ tactless.

"Yes, he is," said Satoru, and Masaru scowled. Kyousuke was a bad influence on his older brother. "Could you please go?"

"Sure. I'll be back in... five minutes."

"Thank you."

When Masaru was absolutely certain that Satoru had picked up the phone again, he said, "What the hell was that all about?"

"What do you mean?"

"And since when did you try to play the innocent act?!"

"Kyousuke-san and I decided that you ought to be a taught a lesson in patience. I am sure Uncle Tadasu and Katsumi-san would agree with what we were doing. It was a poor attempt, but judging by the tone of your voice, a poor attempt was all we needed."

Masaru slapped his forehead. "I'm _not_ Kakeru."

"But Kakeru's personality is rubbing off on you a little, don't you think?"

"I haven't talked to him since Ferio and Fuu's wedding!"

"You lived with him almost your whole life."

Masaru had no immediate reply to that. After a few seconds of contemplation, he finally said, "That's not... the point..."

"You still have a long way to go," said Satoru with -- to Masaru's astonishment -- a hint of amusement in his voice.

"Are you okay?"

"What makes you think I'm not?"

Masaru hesitated. "Never mind."

Ironically, Satoru never laughed, and while at any other time, it would seem out of place, Masaru wanted Satoru to just burst into a guffaw at that moment. It would be more than appreciated, not only because the last time Masaru heard Satoru laugh was before Hikaru was born, but because that if Satoru was going to frighten his younger brother, he might as well perform the task full-scale.

Kyousuke certainly was getting what he wanted. Masaru wasn't quite sure whether or not it was a good thing.

After a few more tense moments, Masaru heard Kyousuke return and said, "They both agreed to it."

"Thank you, Kyousuke-san."

"You heard that, Masaru?" Kyousuke asked with a higher volume. "Now you just gotta convince both your brothers."

For the first time since he talked with Satoru in the phone conversation, Masaru smirked. "Satoru-niisan, can you put Kyousuke-san on the line for me? Please?"

"Why?" came Satoru's suddenly darkened voice.

"Come _on_."

"No."

"All right, then fine. Tell Kyousuke that he's in charge of getting you to go, and I'm in charge of Kakeru. Could you do that for me?"

"No."

"I'm just going to have to call later and tell him that, then. Either way, he's going to get the message."

Through his voice, Masaru could see his older brother's narrowed eyes and glower. "Masaru..."

The middle brother laughed. "I guess he knows what he has to do anyway, so bye!"

With that, Masaru hung up the phone, but his chuckles dispersed from his face immediately. He slumped to the ground, exasperated, as he reflected on the conversation he had just had with his older brother.

Satoru was playful. Satoru, the "sober" one, was _joking around_. Oh, sure, it was subtle, but anyone with a brain could see it. He was being jovial, cheerful, the way Satoru was supposed to be if Hikaru had never been born. He had yet to make any horrible puns, but Masaru knew that within time, Satoru Shidou would be a completely changed person.

Was this for the better or for the worse?

Masaru only hoped that Kyousuke knew what he was doing. If not, the results could be disastrous.

_Ah, love can be such a great influence_, he thought to get himself back up and going so he could have enough energy to spread the news to Kakeru. _I wonder if Satoru has yet to figure it all out... nah, if Kakeru can't figure it out, then neither can Satoru. They're just equally dense when it comes to themselves._

_Being conceited isn't necessarily a _bad_ thing..._

Masaru picked himself off from the ground and wiped his thighs as if it were covered in dust.

_Plan is working so far. Father and Mother agreed to it. Katsumi should be coming along, too. And if Kyousuke is Kyousuke, Satoru will be there. Now, the final step: my little brother, Kakeru Shidou._

He grinned. "This should be easy."

* * *

"A birthday party for Hikaru?" Fumiko asked as she stared at Kakeru with an amused look. "I think that's a perfect idea!"

Kakeru glared at Fumiko from across the table. "For your own sadistic reasons."

"Come on, you want to see your brothers' looks on their faces when Hikaru breaks the news to them just as much as I do. I'm sure even Satoru would have a change of expression!"

"Hmph," was Kakeru's only reply, although he knew that Fumiko was absolutely right.

He yearned to see his brothers' reactions to Hikaru's pregnancy.

The week had come and gone so quickly, and it was Saturday afternoon already. Technically, it was evening, what with it being five o'clock and everything, but due to the summer season, the sun was still burning high in the sky and had yet to show any signs of setting. It still had another hour to go, and the light cerulean and golden light streamed into the small burger restaurant Kakeru and Fumiko were eating dinner in. Men and women were just getting off of work, so the streets of Shinjuku were canned with cars and crowds of hundreds bustling to get home.

Luckily, Kakeru and Fumiko managed to get to the restaurant before people began squeezing in to get their dinner.

And, luckily, it was a fast food joint; the two were already busily munching on their food and had no worries to wait for nearly a half an hour while the chefs prepared meals for everybody in the shop, even if Kakeru and Fumiko had reached there first.

Kakeru had barely made it to Sunshine 60 on time to meet Fumiko, thanks to a hearty phone call from his older brother about throwing Hikaru a birthday party. It was a lovely surprise and a great idea, but Kakeru had no time to react to the news other than, "Sounds great. Call me later for the details, 'kay?" Surely, Masaru wouldn't mind if Fumiko decided to tag along for the thrill ride; she was Hikaru's childhood best friend, after all, and it was enough to consider her family.

Now that he had shared the news with Fumiko, she wasn't as ecstatic as Kakeru thought she would be, but indeed more malicious than anything else. While Kakeru did want to see Satoru's and Masaru's reactions to Hikaru's pregnancy, Kakeru wasn't sure if he would want to see Fumiko's response to that.

"_That_ aside," Fumiko continued as if the mother-to-be Hikaru was a forbidden subject to talk about, "it would be perfect for your family to hear about the other good stuff that's happening."

"Speaking of which, how is Fuu coming along?" asked Kakeru. "Is it four months now that she's been expectant?"

"Yeah," she replied with a laugh. "The kid's been named already; they came up with a great compromise. You know how the people in the other world seem to be named after cars?"

Kakeru groaned. "Oh, don't remind me, please."

"Ferio and Fuu's kid, regardless of gender, is going to be named Subaru."

Kakeru blinked, thought for a moment, and cracked a smile. "You're right; it is a great compromise. Subaru is a Japanese name _and_ a car name. I wonder where that leaves Hikaru..."

"The news came out only last week," said Fumiko. "It'll be too premature for them to come up with a name yet."

"Oh, and four months _isn't_?"

"It's nearly halfway. Haven't you learned anything in biology and health class?"

He scowled. "Oh, shut up. Just because you were good in school and I wasn't doesn't mean--"

"I sucked in school, too," Fumiko retorted. "But it's common knowledge that regardless of where you live, the kid grows in your womb for nine months before it's due to be born. How did you graduate from college again?"

"Soccer. And baseball."

She narrowed her eyes. "I hate athletes."

Kakeru smirked and took another bite from his burger. "Glad to know that Fuu's doing fine. Umi has no boyfriend yet, right?"

"No."

"Thought so."

Fumiko hesitated for a moment, and then grinned mischievously. "You know, for a personality as wild and snotty as hers, Ascot really might be good for her--"

Kakeru raised an eyebrow. "Are you playing matchmaker?"

She shook her head. "Nah. Umi and I work as a team on that profession."

If Kakeru had any food in his mouth or down his throat, he would have started choking. Even without food down his throat, he felt like he was about to gag.

"'Umi and you work as a team on that profession'? Whoa, whoa, whoa; I thought you two hated each other!"

Fumiko stared at Kakeru incredulously. "It's the _only_ thing we work as a team on. And it's never going to happen again, no matter how good our results were last time. Sheesh, someone had to interfere or else those two would still be denying their own feelings!"

"Did you play any pranks?"

"Nope. Umi's relationship with Geo was enough to do it without lying or -- er, much -- scheming."

Kakeru paused for a moment. "You two got Geo and Tatra together, didn't you?"

"You thought otherwise? Normally it's the man who makes the first move, but Geo is too damned modest for his own good! Sheesh, normally when people get together -- normally, so don't you dare give me any death glares -- they confess their feelings and end up sleeping together. For all I know, those two haven't even ventured that far yet. You want to know who actually proposed?"

"... Tatra?"

"Yes! Sometimes, Geo drives me _insane_."

Kakeru laughed at Fumiko's little rant. "Well, you know, keep in mind that Geo might be considered a mere commoner by Chizeta standards; he's probably not allowed -- diplomatically -- to propose to a princess. After all, isn't he some sort of non-commissioned officer? He could never become any higher ranked than commander unless he goes through some sort of military training?"

Fumiko scowled. "You... _might_ be right. But that still doesn't change the fact that he should have kept to himself until Tatra finally gathered the courage to tell him her feelings."

"I don't know. I thought what he did was pretty decent, considering."

"Don't talk to me about decent. Men from the other world are 'decent.' Men from Tokyo are not."

Kakeru pouted with a mock silver lining, choosing not to be offended by Fumiko's words but using the words against her, "All right, Geo is a pretty 'decent' guy. Decent enough to keep himself and Tatra virgins until they get married?"

Fumiko turned bright red and her eyes charged with embarrassed fury, and she sputtered for a rebuttal.

"Well, you said they weren't having sex--"

She found her voice again to spit out hastily, "Kakeru! Don't say that kind of stuff like that that loud in a public place where kids are going to hear!"

"Like who? The teenagers?"

"... I give up."

Kakeru grinned. The only children that would be coming in and out of Mos Burger at this hour would be foreign kids who didn't know enough Japanese to know the meaning of the word 'sex' in the language; everybody else were either teenagers or adults, and considering how young Kakeru and Fumiko were -- over twenty but no older than twenty-five -- the worst response they would get were exasperated head shakes. Fumiko knew it; Kakeru had actually won an argument with a woman for the first time. Ever.

"So," said Kakeru in an attempt to steer the subject away, even if for a moment, "what do you mean, Ascot might be good for Umi?"

Fumiko narrowed her eyes. "You don't know about Ascot's crush on Umi, do you?"

Kakeru blinked. _What the hell is she talking about?_

Fumiko took a sip from her cup, shook her head, and tutted. "Typical, typical, typical Kakeru. You just can't see these things, can you? Ascot has a crush on Umi. Umi, however, is just as oblivious as you and doesn't realize this. _She_ drives me more insane than Geo. And who does Umi like? We have NO clue! Lantis might, but he sure as hell won't give us any hints."

"Maybe she does like Ascot back?"

"Nah. I think Umi still looks at Ascot like a little kid. She certainly treats him as one half the time."

"Sheesh," Kakeru muttered as he stuffed the last piece of hamburger into his mouth and chewed. He wanted to know if there was something going on in Cephiro other than other people's love lives. Was that all women cared about? Romance?

No wonder he could never understand the female mind!

"Let's see, what else is going on over there?" Fumiko mused as her eyes rolled to face the ceiling. Kakeru silently chewed on his French fries and glared at her, hoping that she had something other to say. "I don't think there's too much to tell... everything else, you already know. I haven't seen Presea at all during the week I was there; she's probably having a grand success with her small business in the village. Caldina is still trying to convince Lafarga to have a wedding of their own--"

"She's never going to give up, is she?"

"Nope. I think Lafarga is not willing to change the customs of Cephiro. But then, you have to ask, what are their customs for bonding for life?"

Kakeru shrugged. "That's something you should ask... not Lantis; he won't tell you anything. Oh, hey, speaking of Lantis, how is Eagle doing? I know I asked that a few days ago, but..."

"My answer is still the same. He's still lying to us, and Hikaru is no different. As I remember it, until Umi and I messed with his love life--" With that, Fumiko snickered in such a sinister way that Kakeru was temporarily terrified. "--Geo was getting more and more pissed off and impatient. That was until Umi and I messed with his love life." She chuckled again.

"You're proud of your accomplishment."

"Of course. In my eyes, Geo and Tatra were more perfect for each other than any the other couples in Cephiro," Fumiko scoffed. "And Umi was obsessed to get her 'big brother' some happiness of his own."

"Oh. So," Kakeru continued, deciding to ignore the nosy, curious glance of a passerby with a delectable tray of fast food; he was getting a bit uncomfortable talking in an overflowing burger house. "Do you want to go for a walk? Then you can tell me all about how Eagle is doing because I know you're not telling me something."

Fumiko laughed and stood from the table. "Okay, okay," she agreed as she pushed the chair in. Kakeru followed suit. "I'll tell you on our way to, um, where do you want to go?"

"Preferably out of the city so we can better talk."

"That's a long way out."

"Or we can just get on the train."

Kakeru and Fumiko paused and stared at each other intently. Fumiko with a glare, and Kakeru with a smirk. He had a feeling that he was about to yet win another argument against a woman.

"Oh, all right."

Miraculous day!

"But _you're_ paying."

Damn it.

"Oh, but I paid for dinner," Kakeru whined in his best five-year-old voice. "You can't do this to me!"

"I can and I will."

He sniffed indignantly. "Meanie."

Fumiko rolled her eyes and made her way to the door, Kakeru following her feeling somewhere between resentful and proud, but sometime before he actually stepped out of the door right behind her, he thought he saw just a flicker of a small smile.

For the first time ever, he amused a girl who had not worshipped him throughout the course of their school lives.

Kakeru decided that he felt pride in himself and gladly paid not only for the train tickets, but for the tickets for the aquarium at Sunshine 60 as well as the Special Observation floor of Tokyo Tower.

It was the best "date" he had ever been on, even if it hadn't really been an official "date."

He didn't even bother to realize that Fumiko had cleanly dodged the topic of how Eagle's coma was coming along, and he hadn't asked about it for the rest of the night.

* * *

To Be Continued

**Last Notes**: I don't know if Kikuchi Masami (Masaru's seiyuu) really is in Prince of Tennis/Tennis no Oujisama, but damn it, Masaru is going to have a role in PoT whether he likes it or not! Takeshi Konomi-sensei, please don't sue me. ; And, yes, PoT is an actual anime/manga. It's one of my favorites.


	3. Tomorrow is Waiting

_**Yozora no Mukou: Chapter Three: Tomorrow is Waiting**_

**Bearit's Notes**: Sorry, but the rest of the Shidou family don't find about Hikaru's condition until _next_ chapter. But! You'll notice that the rest of the people in Cephiro are being quite... _sly_... about it. And, yes, I'm being serious about this fic being twenty-six chapters long, but it won't be one long angst-fest. I promise. I also apologize for the slow updates, but as always, blame it on school. Hopefully the pace will pick up as soon as marching band season is over.

* * *

There were two things Kyousuke was absolutely certain about every time he brought Satoru downtown. One, Satoru was nervous in very large crowds; and two, he felt very uncomfortable in casual wear.

Kyousuke almost pitied him, but seeing the normally solemn man's eyes jittering from side to side and his hands subconsciously tugging on his jeans as if it were clinging to his legs was too much for Kyousuke to take seriously. He snickered to himself and urged Satoru out of the elevator lightly with the six others who had accompanied them.

Satoru's heavy breathing indicated to Kyousuke that he ought to grab a seat in the theater somewhere secluded, where nobody else would sit. While that would mean they would have to be in the worst seats in the auditorium, Kyousuke knew that Satoru would enjoy the movie far more if they did sit in a place where sound was horrible and they could barely see the subtitles on the American-made movie rather than among teenagers who were very hyperactive right before the previews began.

After all, Kyousuke dragged Satoru to the movie theaters to enjoy himself more than for getting him a social life this time. He wanted to teach him the pleasures of technology.

At least they wouldn't have to worry about getting a good seat, especially when already, half an hour before the movie was scheduled to air, it looked like that there would not be an empty seat in the theater. Kyousuke glanced behind his shoulder and saw that there were already three other groups aligning themselves within the velvet ropes behind him.

"See, Satoru?" said Kyousuke as he turned back to his friend. "You know that this has to be a good movie if there are this many people here already."

Satoru looked at Kyousuke suspiciously for a moment, although his eyes still danced with discomfort. "This is the second of a three-movie series, isn't it?"

"Actually, it's based on the books. This one is based on the second of those books."

"But they made a movie on the first."

"Of course."

Satoru narrowed his eyes. "Why are you making me see a movie in which I haven't even seen the prequel for?"

Kyousuke sighed. "How many people do you know have watched the _Star Wars_ prequels before the sequels?"

"As I remember it, they had no choice. The prequels were made after the sequels," Satoru pointed out. Kyousuke, startled for a moment, slowly nodded. "I am not as incompetent as you may think about the pop cultural world."

Kyousuke shook his head. "Well, I guess that's basic information. Anybody who hasn't lived in a hole for the past twenty, thirty years probably know that."

"Can't you give me a little bit of credit?"

"Well, it's not like you get into these things enough that I'm free to talk about them to you," Kyousuke said with a small pout. "Do you even know the answer to: 'Who is Gandalf?'"

"A wizard," answered Satoru immediately and nonchalantly.

Kyousuke stared. "Okay. Bad example. I think everybody knows that, too. Harder question, then!"

He hesitated for a moment. Satoru probably knew more about _Star Wars_ than he would expect, especially if he knew one of the most popular characters from _Lord of the Rings_. The funny thing was that only people who were interested in foreign culture would know what they were, and Satoru never seemed to be that type of person. Of course, the only thing Kyousuke ever knew about Satoru's hobbies was that he had none, but what if that had been a false front?

He wouldn't have been surprised.

"All right, who is the main character of _One Piece_?" he asked.

Satoru turned to him, bewildered. "Is that an anime?"

Kyousuke nodded.

"I am neither Masaru nor Kakeru. You are asking the wrong person," he retorted, but the indignant look on his face was enough for Kyousuke to crack up.

"Okay, I think _everybody_ in Japan knows that! It's a more popular anime than the one your brother is in!"

Satoru glared at Kyousuke. Kyousuke made a mental note that Satoru was more interested in foreign culture than he was in Japan's, which he found to be rather odd for a person such as him. Growing up in a kendo dojo and teaching the basics of Japan's history almost every week since he was fourteen must have had him turn to other cultures.

He had to check Satoru's bookshelf someday. Kyousuke only wondered why he had never done so before.

"If I remember correctly, the main character of _One Piece_ is a man named Luffy, isn't it?" a feminine voice said from behind the two men.

Kyousuke and Satoru simultaneously turned their attentions to the woman, who was a beautiful one with long, wavy brown hair and dark emerald eyes. Kyousuke blinked, and Satoru must have done likewise.

"Kuu?"

"Kuu-san?"

She smiled. "Am I right?"

Kyousuke chuckled. "Yeah, but I wouldn't imagine that a girl like you would be interested in that sort of show."

"I'm not. My neighbor's niece and nephew watch it all the time, and I often overhear them talk about it," she answered. "I didn't recognize you at first, especially you, Satoru-san. Bright red and dark blue jeans really look good on you."

From the corner of his eye, Kyousuke saw Satoru shift uncomfortably. "Thank you," he said.

Kyousuke smirked. _Perfect_.

"And what's your excuse for not recognizing me?" he asked.

"Your hair was tied back. I'm used to seeing it down and loose."

He laughed. "Not very attentive to details, are you?"

Kuu replied with a small giggle, "Not physical ones, at least. So, Satoru-san, I would never have figured that you liked these sorts of movies. Has your fascination with magic been awakened with the knowledge of Cephiro?"

"Eh, I dragged him here, though I wouldn't be surprised if he actually liked this movie," replied Kyousuke. "I think he's secretly into this sort of stuff."

"Kyousuke-san," Satoru hissed.

Kuu laughed again. "It's nothing to be ashamed of! It does seem a little out of place considering how little I know about your character, but you don't have to take it too harshly."

"Yeah, Kuu doesn't seem to mind so much, either. You don't have to hide anything from her," Kyousuke whispered, half-hoping that Kuu did not hear.

This time, Satoru's voice was threatening. "Kyousuke-san..."

"So," Kyousuke said, calmly waving off Satoru's threat, "are you here by yourself, Kuu?"

She nodded. "None of my friends are really into this sort of movie."

"Well, that's surprising. Considering how many people are here, I would have guessed that at least one or two of your friends would be interested," said Kyousuke as he noticed that the line was finally starting to move; the doors to the theater were now opened. He looked at Satoru and gave a quick nod towards Kuu, and Satoru glared at Kyousuke, asking why he couldn't do it. He raised his eyebrows in a fashion that indicated that he refused to do so, so Satoru finally gave in.

"Would you like to sit with us instead, Kuu-san?"

She blinked. "Are you sure?"

Satoru hesitated. "Yes. Why not? I have no objections to it, and I'm certain that Kyousuke-san won't mind either."

"Nah, it's fine," said Kyousuke casually as he took a step forward to move with the line. "Besides, you'll enjoy the movie more if you're with somebody you know."

"I guess that's true. Thank you."

Satoru nodded as the line sped up, and Kyousuke was more than pleased.

This was more than he had expected for this day. He just wanted Satoru to enjoy himself, and, knowing that he would, felt more at ease with the task for that day. However, to have a potential girl be with them was delightfully surprising, for if things headed in the right direction, Satoru would no longer need Kyousuke's guidance on how to have fun.

The only problem that danced in the back of Kyousuke's mind was: what would he do once he no longer had Satoru to worry about and take care of?

Would he be able to leave his best friend?

* * *

"I hate delayed flights," Fumiko muttered as she waited in front of the customs gate at the bustling Narita International Airport, checking her watch and the arrivals sign every thirty seconds. As she noticed the time again, being only an hour after the time the flight from Houston was supposed to have come in, she sighed and wondered in the back of her mind if something horrible had happened to her friend's flight and fear slowly settled into her.

She sighed. _Why me, of all people? She's _Fuu's_ cousin, for crying out loud; why couldn't someone from the Hououji family take care of this?_

"I wouldn't be worried so much..."

"Fu! Mi! Ko!" a chirpy voice rang past the bustling crowds of passengers. A hand shot up past a couple of heads, and Fumiko tilted her head to the side and finally saw her short-haired friend squeezing past the many bags and luggage of the other people with a trailing, thick olive bag behind her.

Fumiko sighed in relief and yet groaned irritably. "You idiot, Sera!" she hissed. "You lied to me! You said that you were going to take a flight from Texas--"

"I never lied; I _did_ take a flight from Houston," Sera Araki pointed out as she finally caught up to Fumiko. The two headed away from the gate to make room for more passengers to meet up with their families and friends and headed for the car garage.

Fumiko scoffed as they walked along, "Yeah? Then why did it say for the longest time that the flight from Houston was delayed and there was no indication of an arrival?"

"Fumiko, you need to learn how to pay attention more," Sera said with a slight, amused sigh. "I said that I was going to take a flight from Houston _to_ Los Angeles and then catch a flight there to here. And I wasn't even using a cell phone when I told you this, either!"

She scowled. "Oh. Still."

Sera grinned widely as the two stepped onto a moving walkway. "It's great to see how little you've changed."

"I'd like to say the same."

"I couldn't have changed that much!"

"That's not what I meant. I meant that you haven't changed, and that isn't a good thing."

Sera laughed. "Either we've both matured to the point where we haven't noticed changes in each other, or our relationship will never change as long as we don't have anything dramatic happening between or to us. So, how is your life holding up?"

"Simple. And dull," said Fumiko. "Some things have been happening in Cephiro, and I've only told Kakeru about them--"

Sera raised an eyebrow, and the two stepped off the walkway and reached a nearby elevator. "Oh? You've been in touch with Kakeru, I see?"

Fumiko groaned and pressed the down button. "It's nothing like that, you idiot. It's just his reactions to the new happenings in Cephiro would be so much more amusing for me to watch then it would be for anybody else in Cephiro. Oh, and by the way, your leave came at the perfect time. In about three days or so all of us are going to head over to Cephiro for Hikaru's birthday. You'll find out the new news then."

"Is Rei going to be there?"

"She agreed to it. Hidehiro is coming for sure because Rei isn't giving him any other choice; Masaru's entire family will be there, and I think Satoru and Kyousuke and Mitsuru-san and Shidou-san will definitely be there," said Fumiko. The elevator doors opened and the two stepped inside. "Nobody knows for quite sure whether or not Yuujirou will make it, but you know him..."

Sera grinned mischievously. "And Kakeru?" she sneered.

"You thought otherwise? _Yes_, of _course_ he'll be there! Sheesh!" said Fumiko. "Umi's back from England now, and she knows about the party idea, so she and Masaru are going to be there for a couple of days to pass the idea on."

"Will it be a surprise?"

"I don't think a surprise party would be a good idea, and neither does Kakeru. We forced Masaru to give in to our protests," Fumiko explained. "You'll find out why in a couple of days. You are coming, right?"

Sera laughed. "Of course, a party is what I need to get myself a little relaxation! I just need to get rid of my jet lag, and I'll be all set! How long are we planning on being in Cephiro?"

"A couple of days, I guess. Hikaru will be happy to see you again, what with you being in America working on that space station for who knows how long."

"How is my cousin doing?"

"Which one?"

"The pregnant one."

"They have a name for the kid now, but I'm not telling you what it is; you'll just have to wait and find out for yourself."

Sera narrowed her eyes as the elevator doors swung open. "I'm just in for a great deal of surprises, aren't I?"

This time, Fumiko was the one who laughed menacingly. "Oh, you have NO idea."

However, her grin was wiped away with Sera's taunt of, "A great deal of surprises including your developing relationship with Kakeru? When I left Japan, you still were on the verge of killing each other, and now..." She laughed.

"That was Umi who I was on the verge of killing. Now shut up or I'm stranding you here."

* * *

"So... sound good?" asked Masaru to the small amounts of people who were there. This, in essence, wasn't very much, considering that many people had started their own lives outside of the palace, so essentially it was only Clef, Ferio, Fuu, and Umi who were there.

Politics had to be handled in Chizeta and Fahren; according to Eagle and Geo, Autozam's government hardly ever left time open for its military to have free time to themselves regardless of it being a time of peace. Presea had a business to run, Ascot was out running errands, Masaru really didn't want to know where Lafarga and Caldina were, and Lantis and Hikaru were visiting a village some ways from the palace. Eagle, still being in his coma, was not in the throne room and therefore oblivious to what was going on.

So, Masaru decided to work with what he had.

"The only thing I don't understand," said Umi with narrowed eyes, "is why you only get pumped up about something special for Hikaru. I mean, sure, you're her brother and everything, but..."

"I think it's a splendid idea," Fuu said.

Umi sighed. "You would."

Ferio laughed. "Actually, I just think Masaru would do anything for a party."

Masaru's eyebrow twitched and his hands balled into fists. He didn't want a conversation to be brought up because of his idea--he just wanted an answer and _then_ the conversation. "Look, it's a simple yes or no answer. And regardless of your reply, Hikaru's friends and family will be here on August eighth. Cephiro people, in three days. Maybe not for a party, but just to be here since it's about the only excuse we can find to get away from our jobs to come here."

"I don't know anything about your world," Ferio said slowly, "but I think that a wedding is a better excuse than a birthday party."

"Hey..."

"And," Umi piped up, "don't you think we've been having enough parties for the past few months?"

Masaru blinked and then snapped, "Traitor. You thought it was a good idea earlier!"

"I rethought my opinion."

"Well," Clef piped up, "if all of Hikaru's loved ones from Earth will be here, and if it's about the time that everyone would be returning to the palace or to Cephiro for one reason or another, I think that a party would have been called in the end. You probably hadn't thought of it that way."

Masaru hesitated. "Well... come to think of it, no. But why would the people from the other three countries be here? Not that it's anything bad..."

Clef smiled. "They have their reasons. It's not what you think; it's just a coincidence, but it would be nice if they had a warning."

"Oh, it would be _very_ nice," Umi muttered. Masaru turned to say something to her, but his words were stifled by a very mischievous grin plastered on her face. He blinked as she said. "Oh, yes. Very nice. I take it back, Masaru. This party thing would be a great idea. Bring all of Hikaru's family members and friends. Especially your brothers."

Fuu laughed uneasily, and Ferio sighed.

"That woman is pure evil," he muttered.

Masaru stole a glance at Fuu. "Do you know what she's talking about?"

Fuu smiled but didn't answer. Masaru turned to Clef, but he coughed and averted his gaze elsewhere. He looked at Ferio who wasn't even paying attention to him, and Umi still had a very sinister grin.

"What's going on?"

"You'll see... in three days," said Umi. "There are two bits of news, and you'll _love_ them both to _death_!"

"We could tell him one of them," Ferio pointed out, to which Umi shrugged.

"Yeah, but it'll be cuter if they tell everyone themselves."

"In your own sadistic way."

"I'm serious! It'll be just as cute as the news you and Fuu gave about a year or so back!"

"See? Sadistic. That wasn't a very comfortable situation at first."

"At first, see? _At first_."

Masaru raised an eyebrow and turned to Fuu and Clef, and neither gave off any hints about what Ferio and Umi were discussing. He searched his memory, and he only remembered one piece of news that Ferio and Fuu had shared with every single person affiliated in some way with Cephiro: that they were getting married. But who else was going to be wedded? Certainly not Lafarga and Caldina since Lafarga wanted to stick to Cephiro's traditions, but who else could there be?

"What?" he asked, and Clef sighed.

"Apparently, you have no choice to find out what they're talking about until three days from now," he replied. "Likewise with the other piece of news that would be announced."

"Which," said Fuu, turning away from her husband's and her friend's argument, seemingly awkwardly cheerful, "is not what those two are discussing, and it's by far the biggest news you're going to hear that day. It'll be unfair for me to say what it is because she told us that she wanted to tell you herself."

Masaru blinked. "Huh?"

Fuu giggled and Clef managed a weak smile.

"You'll see," they simultaneously replied.

"Er... sure... so... we're all okay with the party idea? If so, then I'm going home... Umi, you're going to be baking a cake, right? Umi? Hey, Umi. OI!"

Umi snapped her head to Masaru irritably. "What?"

"You're going to be making a cake, right?"

"Why did you think otherwise?"

Masaru rolled his eyes. "Okay, good. I'm going home. See you all in three days."

* * *

To Be Continued

**After Notes**: And what's the point of this chapter, you may ask? One hint: fore-sha-dow-_ing_!


	4. Noticing Someone's Voice

_**Yozora no Mukou: Chapter Four: Noticing Someone's Voice**_

**Bearit's Notes**: Do you want a long explanation as for why the wait was long, or do you just want to torture/maim/burn me at the stake and get on to this chapter? Well, read the chapter first, _then_ you can torture/maim/burn me at the stake, either over the lack of quality of this chapter or... uh... you'll see. Eh-heh.

* * *

Umi watched the birthday festivities amused and satisfied. She hated to admit it, but Masaru's idea worked well. Many of Hikaru's family members and friends from Tokyo showed up, and most of their friends from the other world had decided to take part in the party as well. Well, okay, there were mostly only those from Cephiro. The only ones who were not were Geo and Zazu; the now adolescent Lady Aska had business to attend to in Fahren and she needed Chang Ang and Sang Yung's help, and Tatra and Tarta were busy in Chizeta with family affairs as Geo had put it earlier.

The surrogate sibling pair sat on the edge of the infamous fountain, Geo practically devouring the thick slice of cake he had cut for himself and Umi amusedly pointing that it was Hikaru's birthday--she should get at least half.

"Nobody seemed to mind," Geo pointed out with a fake huff. "And I took less than a quarter of it!"

Umi pouted. "Well, if everyone had as big of a slice as yours, only seven others would have been able to have some. I know my math."

"But they didn't," said Geo as he took another bite. "Which left plenty more for me."

"I have never known any man who has indulged so much in sweets."

He chewed and swallowed in haste to protest. "If you're complaining so much, you should have made more."

Umi glared. "Not everyone here has big appetites like yours. Is a quarter of a cake the least you normally take?"

"Hey, I have big appetites for only one thing-- your cakes. And a quarter of it is... is only my _normal_ amount."

Umi laughed and shook her head again. "Don't eat too fast. We wouldn't want you to die before your wedding, and during Hikaru's birthday, no less."

She realized that she had said the wrong words when Geo grinned wearily and offered a faint chuckle. "Yeah. Before the wedding, _if_ we can even go on with the engagement."

Umi blinked. "What?"

"Nothing. By the way, if you hate sweets so much, why do you even bother to make stuff like this?"

She narrowed her eyes as everything fell into place. She promptly ignored his poor attempt to change the topic--or, rather, return to the original topic--and glared at him. Family affairs. Right. "So, Tatra and Tarta are in Chizeta to convince their parents to go along with you two? A quarter of a cake isn't your normal amount--you're so bothered by it that you have to act like how a normal depressed person would without the alcohol."

Geo stared at her incredulously for a moment, and she held her narrowed eyes strong. He sighed. "Damn, you saw right through me. I guess I should have told you, but I was going to wait until tomorrow, after the party and everything. Happiness is a virtue in this case."

"Even if it is false?"

"Yeah."

Umi blinked and mulled over it for a second. "Okay, never mind, you're right. Best to hide it, especially with Hikaru's brothers around. And I'd say let's talk later, but let's not. The topic is up now. Maybe I can help."

"It's complicated," Geo warned.

"I'm an ex-Magic Knight from another world once involved in a legend I never understood until it was too late, and came back again with the issues _your_ country brought. Don't preach to me about complication."

He laughed. "Sorry."

Umi paused and frowned as she thought over his words. Complicated? Maybe it isn't the obvious. "You're not worried about disapproval, because you and Tatra decided that you were going to do it no matter what her parents said. She's just there to see how to work everything out."

Geo nodded. "You're perceptive today."

She shook her head. "That's as far as it goes. I'm clueless for the rest of the story. What's bothering you, really?"

"You're going to think that I'm an idiot."

"I already think that. It's not going to make a difference."

"Gee, thanks."

Umi grinned for a moment before turning solemn again. "_Oniichan_."

Geo sighed. "I hate it when you refer to me like that. It's always either you want something from me or you're mad at me." Umi glared. Why must he avoid the subject so? Geo met her eye and cleared his throat. "Sorry. I guess... it's stupid, really, but... I forgot that Tatra was a princess."

Umi blinked. "What?"

Geo smirked. "I thought you'd answer like that. I mean, I knew she was royalty and everything, but it never clicked that hey, she's heir to the throne. Whoever she marries gets to take the throne with her."

"Oh," said Umi with a slow nod. She frowned. "So you just realized that by marrying her you get to be--"

"The King of Chizeta." He groaned, set aside his plate, and buried his head. "I've never even been to Chizeta before; how am I supposed to rule the country? A nation and a military are two different things. I can't govern people the way I would soldiers. Soldiers are more apt to follow your commands without hesitation or question. But the people..."

"Have you talked to Tatra about this?"

"I think she knows. I hope she knows."

Umi sighed. "It probably won't be as bad as you think. I'm sure Tatra's parents are intelligent and generous. They'll work something out so that it'd be more comfortable for you." She studied Geo for a moment. "Hey, what do the men of Chizeta normally wear?"

Geo turned his head to Umi. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, I'm trying to imagine you wearing that style of clothes..." She grinned.

He narrowed his eyes. "Gee, you're a lot of help to me, _imouto_."

Umi laughed, which seemed to have promptly invited the Shidou voice actor over to chat with the two. Masaru plopped down next to the ex-Knight with a wide grin plastered on his face and a cup of crimson juice in his hand. Geo immediately sat up, and Umi coughed a little to hinder her laughter. Masaru then frowned.

"What? I feel so unwanted!" he wailed.

"Nothing against you," said Geo hastily. "We were just talking about... events."

Masaru blinked, and then nodded. "Oh." He smirked. "Private stuff?"

"Masaru, I will throw you in the fountain if you don't develop tact soon," Umi warned. "What we were talking about is none of your business."

"That's mean. And when I've come by to spread some holiday cheer--"

"It's not Christmas yet."

"... that's not what I meant and you know it." Umi stuck out her tongue, but Masaru seemed to have ignored her and continued. "Besides, Geo over there looked a little glum before. What's up?"

"Like I said," said Umi, immediately jumping to her "brother's" defense, "it's none of your business."

"And like I said, you're mean. No wonder you and Kakeru never get along." Masaru shook his head irritably, but thankfully passed over the subject and wandered to another. "Say, Geo, I just heard that you and Tatra finally are getting married."

Geo blinked. "What do you mean 'finally'?"

"Well, you two have been attracted to each other ever since _I_ met you, and everybody was wondering--"

"Why did everybody realize our feelings before we did?!" Geo groaned and buried his head again. Masaru and Umi grinned.

It was then when the redheaded star of the party called for everyone's attention, and with her husband's hand gently placed upon her shoulder and a loving smile on his face, she announced with such cheerfulness that Umi almost swore that Hikaru was being very malicious with the news... but Hikaru wasn't a sadistic person, so it couldn't be true. But she must have taken some delight in her words, for with a bright smile she said:

"Mother, Father, oniisama-tachi... I'm pregnant."

From beside her, Umi heard Masaru choke on his drink and stutter... well, something, his eyes wide and his shoulders hunched. Umi and Geo exchanged a grin, and Umi looked around the courtyard to see some of the other reactions.

Satoru and Kyousuke wore identically stunned faces, though when Kyousuke caught a glance at Satoru's face, he pursed his lips as if to stifle a guffaw. Elsewhere, Katsumi beamed with elation, and next to her Hikaru's mother smiled kindly. Hikaru's father had a look to kill, and Umi did likewise as Kyousuke. A couple of Hikaru's childhood friends gaped, but when Umi had nearly completed the circle around the garden, she gaped at Kakeru and Fumiko.

They both were turned to each other with a smirk, Fumiko's feminine fist to her mouth in hidden laughter and Kakeru's shaking shoulders not bothering to hide his enjoyment of the situation.

"I'm disappointed. Kakeru would have been the most enjoyable of all." Umi sighed.

Masaru jumped to his feet then, dropping the glass (thankfully not breaking) and pointing at his sister and brother-in-law. "WHAT?!"

Hikaru merely giggled.

* * *

As Hikaru's family and Sera and Rei swarmed around her, Kakeru and Fumiko turned to each other with a huge smirk. Kakeru shook his head and brought his cup to his lips--holding back a laugh was just as bad as performing the actual laugh. Fumiko heaved a great amused sigh.

"Your family gives great entertainment," she said, "someone ought to make an anime about them."

Kakeru pulled his glass away and swallowed the small lump of red liquid. "Entertainment for people outside of the family. It's no fun inside."

"But you can't deny that it's ever quiet around your house," Fumiko pointed out, "not with you and Masaru."

"I'll give you that." He blinked. "Wait. I'm not _that_ noisy!"

Fumiko laughed and waved off the topic, proceeding to their conversation from previously. Kakeru grunted and turned back to where most of the excitement stood, which was where most everyone else gathered. Those from Tokyo gathered in shock; those from Cephiro gathered for pure enjoyment. Some random others continued to watch from the sidelines such as he and Fumiko chose to do, but nobody ever stopped glancing the general way of the crowd and turned back to their partner with a smile. Geo and Umi, for instance, stayed put, but company soon joined them when Ascot noticed they were alone together.

Kakeru grinned. Ascot surely has matured since the first time they met, and now he had an aura of protectiveness over Umi. Even now, when everybody knew fully well that Geo and Umi were just siblings, and Geo was now engaged. Neither had shown even the slightest interest in the other; when Kakeru suggested it to Umi a couple of years previously she promptly sent him flying into the fountain. He climbed out soaked and met with a load of guffaw from the onlookers. If it had been Tokyo he would have flushed with embarrassment; since it had been Cephiro he glared and took the towel offered to him before he screamed at Umi.

Fumiko hadn't been there, luckily. Kakeru couldn't bear the idea that she would have continuously used that against him, especially since Umi refused to remember why she even pushed him. That, and being embarrassed in front of her of all people wasn't one the top of Kakeru's wish lists.

Again, because she would have used it against him.

"So, random question," said Fumiko, and Kakeru widened his eyes acting as though he had actually been paying attention, "who in this world would you date if you could?"

Kakeru blinked. They weren't talking about this _before_ Hikaru made her proclamation to family and friends. He stole a glance in the direction of the group, and many began to drift away since, apparently, the sane ones in the Shidou family let the news sink in and they accepted it, while Masaru acted as he did fifteen minutes previously. Nothing over there seemed to have sparked the topic change--and, wait, what _were_ they talking about before this?

"Say what?" asked Kakeru.

Fumiko smirked and asked again pointedly, "Who would you date in this world if you could?"

Kakeru shrugged. "Presea's beautiful enough."

"Since when did you care about looks over personality?" asked Fumiko with her voice drawing death.

"What?" asked Kakeru with a bright grin, trying to imitate innocence. "Jealous because personality is all you've got to get a guy like me? You don't even have enough of that to win me!"

If looks could kill...

"_You_..."

Sensing the conversation taking a dangerous turn, Kakeru steered the attention away from him. "Who would _you_ date from the other world? _If you could_?"

Fumiko sniffed pompously and turned her head away from him. "Well, wouldn't _you_ like to know? After all, you'd like to know the kind of competition you're up against if you want to be with _me_?"

Kakeru frowned. "Wait a minute. I turned you down the exact same way! Cheater! No stealing from other rejections and insults!"

"But you make it too easy."

"Answer the question, Tachiiri."

"Oh, how frightening, using my family name. I thought we were past that stage in our relationship?"

"_What_ relationship?!"

Kakeru seethed and clenched his fists, while Fumiko stole a peek at him from the corner of her eyes. Much to his irritation, Fumiko warmed her cool eyes and gently smirked. Kakeru wanted to glare some more, but found he couldn't. He loosened his fist and turned his hellish gaze into suspicious curiosity. Somehow, there was something about that look...

In a soft yet deep voice she asked, "Do you really want to know?"

"Er," Kakeru managed. What to do now? "Well. I told you mine..."

She lifted the other end of her smirk and now held a full smile. A full... seductive smile. Kakeru widened his eyes. _Oh no. What the hell is she _doing_...?_

"Eagle Vision," she said simply, and her face transformed into wicked innocence that modeled Eagle's voice whenever he was playful.

"What?"

"He's everything _you_ aren't! He's kind, fun, polite, rich, and..." she smirked evilly this time. "Damn sexy."

"You...!" Kakeru stuttered for some sort of retort. "Bu--but... he's in a..." he glanced around, making sure Geo and Zazu were out of earshot, "... a _coma_."

"And your point is?" She turned her head to the sky with a musing stare. "You and Presea, me and Eagle. Should be very interesting. Though, you have to fight Clef, I think, or at least turn Presea's attention away from Clef. Me, well, as long as I help Eagle get over Lantis and Hikaru, I'll be on the right track..."

"You evil fiend!"

Fumiko turned back to him and frowned slightly. "Now you're sounding like someone from this world."

Kakeru sighed, knowing this was something he could not win. "Fine. Have it your way. You go after Eagle, and I'll go after Presea. How does that sound?"

"But isn't Presea older than you?"

"So is Eagle!"

Fumiko beamed. "What? Are you jealous that I'm interested in your exact opposite instead of someone more like you?"

"What are you getting at?"

Before Fumiko could answer--though Kakeru doubted that she would--Masaru stormed to the two of them, his face near purple with rage. Fumiko burst out in laughter, and Kakeru was unsure whether to do the same or run away from his older brother.

Masaru huffed once, then twice. He licked his lips and narrowed his eyes. "You," he stated simply.

Fumiko walked towards the direction of Geo and Umi, who Kakeru noted from the corner of his eye, was watching with the utmost amusement. He was alone in this. Damn it. Why did Fumiko have to leave him now of all times?

Kakeru cleared his throat. "And... uh, what about me?"

Masaru glared some more, but he was growing angrier and angrier. His face turned a darker shade of a color Kakeru never knew existed. He decided to be frightened.

"_Our_ little sister is _pregnant_, and all you have to do is _stand_ there with your _girlfriend_ and laugh about it?!"

Kakeru blinked. They sure as hell were not laughing just before Masaru showed up! "W-wait a minute, Masaru, I-- we-- weren't doing... we were _yelling_ at each other!" Then Kakeru realized what else his older brother said. "And she is NOT my girlfriend!"

"Off the topic of our little sister, I see?"

"Masaru, you're going to be an uncle; why are you so upset?"

"You aren't doing your 'Kakeru' thing!" said Masaru. "I hate covering for you! You're supposed to be eating our dear brother-in-law's head off, but you aren't! You aren't surprised at all; you don't seem to care..."

From the distance, Fumiko sighed. "Masaru, he isn't surprised and he isn't upset, because I _already told him_. He's had time to get used to the idea. Now quit acting like him, you're starting to scare all of us."

Masaru blinked, and the color faded from his face. "Oh," he managed when his skin returned to its normal color. He glared at Kakeru. "You cheater."

Kakeru shrugged, and his courage rose again. "Hey, I never asked to know. She just came hopping into my apartment one day and--"

An arm wrapped around his neck and Masaru now hung off Kakeru's shoulders. "We're going to be uncles, Kakeru! Uncles! And Lantis, if our nephew or niece turns out anything like you, this boy here--" He jammed a thumb in Kakeru's cheek. Kakeru glared and struggled free from his grasp. "--will have to kill you for your lack of personality."

Kakeru pushed Masaru away as soon as he wriggled out of the death lock and brushed off his shirt. "Idiot," he muttered. Finally, he turned to where his sister and brother-in-law stood, and a new light of jealousy grew in him even as Masaru continued his ecstatic ramblings about how he was going to spoil his nephew or niece.

Hikaru and Lantis were blissful. Each of them wore soft smiles and exchanged kind and loving eyes. Kakeru knew he lost his sister when he first met Lantis but that wasn't what bothered him now.

Why couldn't _he_ have anything like what they shared?

He sighed. _Love only comes to those who deserve it, I guess._

* * *

Since Satoru had an early class the next morning, he politely excused himself from the party and headed towards the simple wooden doorway that linked Cephiro's palace to Tokyo Tower. According to his watch, the Tower would be closing in about fifteen minutes, so he would be cutting it rather close making the last few elevator trips down to ground level. At least he stayed for as long as he possibly could before this happened.

As par normal, Kyousuke accompanied him, and Satoru welcomed his presence with a small nod as they walked through the doorway from the medieval-like walls to the modern day bathroom stall, which held the forever hung sign of "Out of Service."

Without a word the two made their way out of the women's bathroom, luckily being spotted by nobody, and walked into the empty observation arena. A high-pitched voice called out from far off, "Last elevator down to ground level! Please make your way over here immediately!"

Kyousuke flashed Satoru a grin. "Shall we go?"

Satoru nodded and they walked silently to where the rest of the visitors gathered in a line. A relatively short line, perhaps because they were honeymooners or lovebirds wanting to watch the moon rise over the Tower as a sort of date. After all, each man had a beautiful woman wrapped around his muscled shoulder and the two shared secret giggles and words as they boarded the elevator. Despite the small numbers of people onboard, Satoru and Kyousuke still found themselves forced to stand close to each other to stay away from the couples lined against the walls holding each other intimately.

Satoru felt Kyousuke shuffle with discomfort, though Satoru could hardly understand why. Well, there was the idea that they were the only single ones in the car, but that was nothing. He should not be as intimidated by the others' actions as the trip down seemed to take forever.

When the elevator landed at the ground level and everyone swarmed out, one of the couples did not seem to think so. A girl who could not be out of high school pouted as she and the man she hung on walked past Satoru and Kyousuke.

"That was too short," she complained.

The man she was with, someone who seemed to be a "bad boy biker," laughed heartily and kept his arm around her. "Oh, come on, there are other places in Tokyo we can hang out."

"I guess you're right."

Kyousuke leaned close to Satoru and whispered, "How _old_ is that guy? He looks about twenty-something--"

"Leave them be," said Satoru. Kyousuke fell grudgingly silent, and Satoru sighed. He knew nothing of the two, and he knew it to be unfair that he disapproved of their relationship.

The sliding doors parted for the two and they walked away from the quiet bustle of the shops at ground level to the warm hum of traffic a block away from the Tower. The yellow lights were behind them and now they were met with only orange streetlamps illuminating the streets, and they kept silent when they boarded the bus to the train station and even fifteen minutes later, when they reached their destination. A conversation did not take place for them until they boarded the green striped train that took them to the station closest to their home and were halfway there.

Satoru sat next to the door and Kyousuke next to him; next to Kyousuke sat a business man with a newspaper in his lap, snoring softly as his head bobbed up and down along with the sound of the trains wheels along the tracks. The car was near empty, and Satoru thought of it to be quite unusual. It wasn't _that_ late, he was sure of it.

"Wow," said Kyousuke softly, shaking his head slightly. "Your sister. _Pregnant_. I remember when I first met her, when she was, oh, three years old or something. I didn't get to know her well at all until she was about eleven or twelve, when she was about to start her years at that all girls' school."

Satoru nodded. Somehow, he knew the conversation would start like that. And he knew precisely where it was going to lead to. But silence with Kyousuke was just a short-time blessing; he preferred Kyousuke to talk rather than keep quiet, though it was welcome for short periods at a time. So he said nothing to stop his train of thought.

"And now, this... it's crazy, isn't it?"

Satoru nodded again.

Kyousuke grinned. "You're going to be an uncle again. How does that feel?"

"I don't see Shingo quite enough to be considered a true 'uncle'," said Satoru, "and I probably won't see Lantis's and Hikaru's child any more frequent to let him know me."

"But by blood, you _are_," said Kyousuke. Satoru sighed. "Don't have a guilt trip on me. Both kids will still love you no matter what. How could anyone not? Besides, I know lots of people who hardly ever saw even their grandparents except for Obon and New Year's, so you'll be fine, believe me. So long as you do what Masaru is going to do with Hikaru's kid and spoil him rotten with money on New Year's."

Satoru stifled a laugh, and Kyousuke beamed more brightly than he did before.

A rough man's voice spoke on a soft intercom in the car. "Next stop, Kakigawa. Kakigawa."

"That's us," said Kyousuke, and the two stood as the train slowly came to a halt. Along with a couple of others they piled off the car and left the boarding ramp in quite a haste, though there was no need. The early class wasn't until after Satoru normally woke and the train station was small enough to get from the ticket booths to the farthest boarding ramp in less than fifty strides.

They quickly found themselves walking side by side on the road home, with white lamps as their only eyes to the darkened residential streets. Finally, the conversation previous on the train came back in the direction Satoru feared it would.

"So," Kyousuke continued, "your sister is married and is expectant. Your younger brother is married and has a son. Your youngest brother is more open than you but has your social skills. His bad temper won't land him with anyone so soon. But what excuse do you have? I know plenty of girls who like the brooding type."

Satoru sighed. "Kyousuke-san..." Why, of all things Kyousuke knew about him, was him not feeling comfortable with talking about his love life not one of them?

"I'm serious. You don't want to be just an uncle, do you?"

"I'm fine with it."

"Okay, I'll give you that," said Kyousuke with scorn in his eyes. "But you are _not_ fine with being alone, are you?"

Satoru shook his head. "Kyousuke-san, how many times must I tell you? I'm not alone. Not with you around."

"I don't mean like that," said Kyousuke with a frown, but now he refused to meet Satoru's eyes, "I mean... well... love, you know? More than just friendship. More than what we have. You need a girl, Satoru, who will, you know, _be_ there for you. All the time. Take care of you."

"But you already do that," said Satoru. "I've always considered you to be my best friend, or like a brotherhood that Masaru and Kakeru never gave me... could never give me, since I was the one always taking care of them."

"I don't mean it like that!"

"What's the difference?" asked Satoru. He noticed that they stopped walking underneath a streetlamp, and now they were facing each other. Kyousuke's face was frustrated, and Satoru only stood in mere puzzlement.

"The difference _is_," said Kyousuke, his voice low and wavering, "that what we have with each other isn't enough. You need someone who loves you the way you love hi-her back. That when you're afraid or when she is, or when you both are, you'll hold each other. And, well... there's just so much more to it than what we have. What our friendship has."

Satoru frowned. "But I don't need any of that--"

"Yes, you _do_," Kyousuke retorted. "Satoru, you're not as strong as you let on. I know that. Your family may be blind to that fact, but I know it. Don't you think someone else who has the power to give you strength know that, too?"

Satoru fell silent. How could he argue with Kyousuke when he kept overriding his comments. Romance was for ones who needed it, deserved it, and Satoru held neither requirement. He didn't need it--he was quite content teaching others the Shidou style of kendo and having Kyousuke around as a companion to get him to loosen up. He didn't deserve it--what has he ever done to merit such reward?

But his silence proved fatal. "See?" said Kyousuke. "I'm right. So why won't you just start going out on dates?"

Satoru said nothing for a while. "Kyousuke-san, I don't _want_ it. I'm happy the way I am now."

"Even if--even when you see others happy with their one special person?"

Satoru sighed. "Kyousuke-san, please stop being so concerned with me. It seems like the one who needs the relationship you want for me the most is you. Why don't you find someone?"

Kyousuke turned his gaze away from Satoru. "I already found someone to provide my support and love to."

"And?"

Kyousuke said nothing for a while, and Satoru feared the worst for his friend. Who in her right mind would turn Kyousuke down? Was he just being used by this girl he loved?

Kyousuke shook his head. "It doesn't matter. You're changing the subject."

"What do you mean it doesn't matter?" Satoru snapped, somewhat surprised with his voice. He never even lashed out against his brothers when they were transforming the house into a barnyard. Kyousuke, too, seemed shocked and even hurt, but before Satoru could stop himself from losing control he lost it. "If it doesn't matter for you, why should it matter for me? Why bother with this if all it causes is pain for the both of us?"

"Because it's _worth_ it!" Kyousuke retorted, the shock worn off. "It's worth the pain of finding someone for you who is right for you. _My_ feelings certainly don't matter in this entire... matter!"

"Why not? If you're giving up your chances with the girl _you_ love on the account of me, please, stop it! I'm not worth that trouble. I'm not worth you giving up your happiness!"

"I'm trying to give happiness to him but he won't take it! Maybe if you felt worthy of my giving up my happiness I _will_ be happy because _you're_ the one I...!" snapped Kyousuke, then he blinked and paled. "Oh. Shit."

Satoru widened his eyes and took a step back away from his friend. "What?" he whispered hoarsely.

Kyousuke also shrunk away from Satoru, and the most dreadful silence befell the two. Kyousuke shifted around uncomfortably, like he did back on the elevator, like he did every time Satoru asked him if there was someone he was pining for and Kyousuke acknowledged it...

"I have to go," said Kyousuke, and he turned and took long strides to hurry away.

Satoru, still frozen in place, could do nothing to stop him. He had nothing to say, nothing to do, nothing to save his only lasting friendship.

He stood there. Suddenly lifting his feet to either catch up with Kyousuke or head home seemed like the most impossible task to ever accomplish.

* * *

To Be Continued


End file.
